


baby, it's cold outside

by racheltuckerrr



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/F, Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-17 04:06:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13068780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/racheltuckerrr/pseuds/racheltuckerrr
Summary: After a major fight Kara and Cat must put on brave fronts to attend Alex and Maggie's wedding. Will the atmosphere help fresh wounds heal, or cut them deeper?





	baby, it's cold outside

**Author's Note:**

  * For [swept_away](https://archiveofourown.org/users/swept_away/gifts).



> Hi! So this was going to be a small 1k thing because I haven't written anything for months and I wasn't sure if I could wing any more than that, but then my hand slipped and this happened. It also turned out angstier than I originally intended, but l'm hoping that the ending makes up for that. I really hope you're gonna like it. Merry Christmas! :)

When Kara opens her eyes, the sunlight is already peaking in through the curtains, which means she has slept in quite a bit. Not that that part is a surprise.

It’s been a week since her epically painful facedown with the latest vigilante who insists on calling herself Reign and has taken to haunting the streets of National City, and Kara has done nothing much else since, but slowly build her strength back up bit by bit in preparation for what she knows has to come next.

Even though the so-called Worldkiller hasn’t shown herself since, Kara knows it’s far from over. Whatever she’s planning next, this brief interlude can be nothing more than the calm before the devastating storm. And one way or another, this is going to be her line in the sand. Because now that Kara’s faced the devil once, she knows she cannot rest until the people of this city, including everything and everyone she loves are safe from it, and as usual, Kara has taken it upon herself to be their sole saviour, personal consequences be damned.

Which is probably the most plausible explanation for the cold, empty bed she now finds herself in.

“Great,” she huffs out as she stares up at the ceiling.

There is breakfast on the bedside table, just like every other day when she’s recovering from a solar flare; the shades are open to let as much natural sunlight in on this cold winter morning as physically possible, and her favourite herbal tea is still warm in the giant yellow mug that has become Kara’s favourite in Cat’s kitchen, effectively making it hers.

She is perfectly cared for in all the small yet delightfully thoughtful ways that make her swoon whenever she thinks too much about them. And yet.

Her injuries were so substantial that Kara spent the first five nights after the fight in the sunbed that Cat had installed in one of the bedrooms two weeks after they officially got together, but when she felt the beginning of her powers returning yesterday night, she immediately moved back to the one they now share together. Secretly hoping that it would be a good first step to try to bridge the gap between them, physically and mentally as well.

If only.

Cat’s side of the bed is still empty and barely rumpled, leading Kara to believe that she couldn’t have slept more than a few hours in it, if at all. Probably the latter. Kara sighs as she buries her face in her hands, wincing as she still feels the soreness of her flesh practically everywhere, even if the wounds have already healed days ago.

Somehow it still doesn’t hurt as much as this fight with Cat is hurting her right now.

It’s not that Kara doesn’t understand Cat’s point of view, because she does. Ever since she found out Alex worked for the DEO, there is a certain sort of tightness in her stomach every single time her big sister leaps into danger for the Greater Good without any concern for her own well-being. And it doesn’t matter that Kara knows more than anyone how capable Alex is, that feeling is still there. Every. Time.

So Kara gets it.

But it’s different with Supergirl. Alex is human, Kara is not.

In her own mind, it’s as simple as that, really. When you are the most qualified to do something, you shouldn’t send someone less likely to succeed in your place, especially if there is physical danger involved. It was a sound argument, right up until the moment Kara said it to Cat out loud and watched her face contract in a way that meant a storm was coming. And it did…just not in the way that Kara expected.

At first she thinks it will be quick and crude, like Cat tends to be sometimes when she lashes out in order to protect herself. Kara has dealt with that before, and while it’s not pleasant, she would know how to handle that. This though, is something else entirely.

The fight itself is nothing new, but the way they are avoiding it this time around somehow seems ominous to Kara, even if she can’t quite put her finger on why. Cat is always skittish when they are having an argument, and it’s often hard to tell what to expect, but this is new even for Kara. She casts one look at the still dirty super suit hanging on the door next to the pale pink bridesmaid dress that she’s going to wear this weekend as she watches her sister marry the woman she loves, and shakes her head.

It shouldn’t mean anything, really, and if she was anyone else she might even believe that. But Kara knows better. It’s a message, and it’s as much as Cat is apparently willing to say to her on the topic right now. And Kara’s been with Cat, romantically or otherwise, long enough now that she understands what’s happening. Cat is playing the long game, and she’s not going to give in unless Kara pushes her, which is generally not a smart thing to do.

So she sighs and resigns herself to the fight she knows is coming, silently cursing the inconvenience of the timing with everything else that’s happening right now.

* * *

After finishing a substantial breakfast as a form of nutritional courage, Kara finally goes to find Cat. It’s one thing to have this tension hanging over them, but quite another to go an entire day without her presence, and Kara can’t deny craving being near her, even when they’re like this.

Late nights in the office long after everyone else has left and there was explicit permission given for her to do the same already proved that.

Cat is sitting on the couch in the living room with the CatCo winter spread all over her lap, her glasses askew low on her nose as she frowns at all the imprecisions that no one else would ever notice. She’s beautiful, in a distant kind of way that’s oddly reminiscent of the times when Kara was nothing more than a really dedicated assistant.

That thought alone makes her shiver, and not in a pleasant way, because they have been through so much since then with everything from Myriad, to Adam, to Siobhan, to Cat wanting to dive and Kara finally working up the courage to try and stop her, to Cat gently telling her no and leaving while also telling her yes in a completely different way.

To Cat coming back, marking a whole new beginning for the both of them. It’s been such a long and challenging road from way back when to this moment in time that it’s almost insulting to compare the two scenarios, even in her own head.

That, and Kara also knows very well that the edition is as perfect as it will ever get, and that Cat herself approved it weeks ago. The magazine is not what this is about.

The tightness of those slim shoulders and the sharp lines on the face that Kara sees first every time she closes her eyes tell her all she needs to know about where Cat’s mind is right now.

For a moment Kara wonders what tactic to try because straightforwardness would be her number one go-to, but it’s almost impossible to reason with Cat when she’s like this. At times like these, the earnest Sunny Danvers approach probably does more harm than good, so Kara just sighs audibly as she stands in the middle of the living room that has seen some of the couple’s most tender and vulnerable moments and she waits.

As strategies go, it’s not her best attempt, but she knows she really shouldn’t push her luck right now.

She’s not surprised when Cat doesn’t look up at first, but after a whole minute passes and then another, and another, Kara fears she’s going to be ignored entirely. She stands her ground however, because she’s not ready to commit to this fight so much that she can deny needing Cat, in any small way possible. It seems she’s not the only one, because Cat lifts the far corner of the blanket sprawled over her legs just the slightest bit and it’s all the invitation Kara needs.

She slips onto the end of the comfy leather couch and takes the proffered blanket to cover them both all the while reaching for the layout in Cat’s outstretched hand. Wishing she knew what to say to make it better, but coming up empty still, Kara pours over the holiday edition with Cat for the hundredth time, their legs barely brushing against each other under the warm blanket.

Kara knows she is far from forgiven and even though her hands are itching to touch Cat to try and do her best to reassure, just the fact that they are in such close proximity and yet so far apart is enough to tell her that this may not be as easy to solve as their other fights have been.

* * *

When Alex calls for the fifth time to ask if having the wedding now is really such a good idea, Kara snaps and tells her that it probably isn’t, not even remotely. When she’s greeted by only silence, she adds that with their line of work, a wedding is very rarely a good idea, which is exactly why this one is so important.

Fighting with the woman who’s the only person that Kara could ever imagine herself marrying one day doesn’t make it any easier to be optimistic about the very real threat of Worldkiller and everything else that’s just waiting around the next corner to tear them all down, but Kara knows that if anyone deserves this, it’s Alex, so she vows not to back down on this now.

Which is also why she doesn't tell her sister about the fight, because she doesn’t want Alex to have to focus on anything but the fact that she’s going to marry the love of her life in less than three days, and Kara will be damned if she lets anything stand in the way of that. Her fight with Cat only makes her more adamant about that.

She tells her sister to forget about it all, for just a second, to imagine a world where there is no constant threat, and asks her if she thinks marrying Maggie this Saturday would be a good idea then.

“Of course,” Alex says without a second thought, and Kara nods. She has a feeling Alex won’t call again for at least a few hours.

Which gives Kara more than enough time to contemplate her current situation, and another similar one before that. Their first fight as a couple, which also happened to center around the same subject, in more ways than one.

Kara closes her eyes and concentrates as she recalls the memory, the happy clinking of the glasses practically still echoing in her ears as she transports herself back to Alex and Maggie’s impromptu engagement party, three months prior.

They’d only just finished a mission and Kara blew out her powers for the first time in a long time, which lead to a frantic Cat Grant showing up at the alien dive bar after ten at night, still with her heels on, and a fire in her eyes that only barely concealed how terrified she’d really been. It was the first time she’d ever feel that way, knowing full well everything that goes on behind the steel curtain of Supergirl’s life, but it would be far from the last.

“Kara, come with me,” Cat commanded then, before all but dragging her to the bathroom where she proceeded to thoroughly check her over for injuries, even in places that made Kara blush.

That night, she got a taste of what it’s like to have the full, unflinching attention of someone of Cat’s caliber directed at her in a way it’s never been before. They fought about safety and Supergirl, and the callousness that comes with pride and the false notion of being invincible. Kara still remembers the way Cat looked under the crimson red lights of the bathroom as she yelled at her for being careless with a life that she considered more precious than most.

It made her think of the breaking dawn under the light of Rao on each new day, and in that moment she knew, she’d never seen anything more beautiful.

Their current fight was a far cry from the affectionate lovers spat that ended as their arguments usually did, with the two women in each others’ arms, sharing whispered apologies and assurances, not the least bit discouraged by their fascinated, unwitting audience.

With her powers still gone, Kara had no way to overhear the conversation between the two prospective brides as they sat at the counter, sipping their respective drinks, while keeping an eye on the two blondes who seemed to be too lost in each other to notice anything else.

“Do you think they managed to work it out, whatever that was?” Maggie asked in a playful voice, not really expecting an answer as the evidence spoke for itself.

It was after midnight, and Cat and Kara were the only two people left standing as they swayed gently together to a beat of their own, in a far corner of the room.

Alex hummed in response, taking a swig of her drink.

"Kara has been putting herself in more danger than usual recently. Cat doesn’t like it, understandably," she said by way of explanation.

"No wonder. It seems you can’t control your own superhero, no matter your royal status."

"I don’t like it either, and I’ve said as much. But it’s Kara’s choice and it’s what she feels she has to do…I understand that. I think Cat does too on some level…but with them it’s different."

"Yeah, it is," Maggie said looking at Cat and Kara slow dancing as they held onto one another carefully, reverently under the twinkling lights of the alien bar.

Kara leaned into Cat and placed a tender kiss on her bare shoulder while Cat buried her face in her neck and breathed in her hero. 

"I bet you one-month’s worth of Netflix account control that they won’t be far behind," she added then, waving her ring clad finger in front of the woman who got down on one knee to put the simple, elegant silver band there.

"Yeah, I’m not stupid, Sawyer,” Alex smirked at her fiancé. “I don’t take losing bets."

That night Cat and Kara went home with a tentative agreement for a status quo that they both longed for more than anything. Although their feelings for each other have been around for far longer than either of them would care to admit, this thing between them was still new and fragile in all the ways that weren’t there before when they were just two people pulling against whatever forces were determined to bring them together.

It was far from being their first fight, but it was the first one they had as a couple and that made everything more prominent somehow. It made Kara's skin crawl and it made Cat more frazzled than she’s ever been since she finally gave in to her feelings for Kara. In the end it made them both want to reach out and come together again, stronger than before.

 _El mayarah_.

All in all, that one was a productive fight. This one isn’t. Cat has retreated into herself for some reason, so much so that she’s yet to even raise her voice to Kara, even though they both know she’s mad.

Or maybe that isn’t the right word, but she is _something_. And Kara really needs to know, now, because Alex is getting married in two days and she can’t have this hanging over them when that happens.

So she keeps pushing, and in true Danvers fashion, makes it all blow up in her face instead.

* * *

It’s the day of the damn wedding when Kara finally steps into it. All the way, right in the smack-dab middle of it.

With just about the subtlety of a sledgehammer, really.

But she can’t help it, this had already gone on long enough, and she needed them to be okay like yesterday. Which is far from where they are in this moment, standing on opposite sides of the spacious, tastefully decorated DEO hallway, staring solemnly ahead, looking anywhere but at each other as they wait for the ceremony to begin.

Kara chances one super speeded look at Cat before she thinks better of it, but she’s not quick enough if the clearly disapproving purse of those dark lips is any indication. Once she realizes she’s been caught, Kara snaps her head back so fast she probably would have pulled a muscle if she didn’t already have her strength back.

It’s hard to imagine that just two hours ago, when Kara stepped into their shared dressing room, she had the privilege of watching Cat put on that exact dark shade of lipstick, and even less so that Cat then turned her back to Kara, silently offering for her to do the honours.

Kara’s fingers still twitch from the electricity she felt when she pulled the zipper from the delicate dip in Cat’s lower back, all the way up to the back of her neck. Her hands were itching to reach out and touch the skin there too, to run her fingers over the smooth expanse of those bare shoulders calling to her like her own personal siren’s song.

Even Kara knew better than to act on that desire though, so instead she settled on a simple compliment. One corner of those dark coated lips automatically turned upwards in response, but Cat’s smirk was tight and not at all what Kara was going for.

In retrospect, maybe that was the moment when she should have just kept her mouth shut. But then she wouldn’t be who she is.

“I don’t know what you want from me, Cat,” she finally sighed in frustration. “You won’t talk to me, and no matter what I do, it doesn’t seem to be the right thing. My big sister is getting married today, and I’d like to be there to support her with everything I’ve got, and a very big part of that is you, Cat. I’m at the end of my rope here.”

Silence. Kara decided to play her last card then.

“And it’s Christmas for godsake!”

Cat cringed, and Kara laughed nervously, not understanding.

"What have you got against a Christmas wedding? I know for a fact that it’s Carter’s favourite holiday."

And out of everything that’s happened that week, that exact moment was what finally made Cat snap.

"Because, _Kara_ , every time I hear someone say Christmas, or wedding,” she said in a fierce whisper that even Kara had to strain to hear, which was probably the point, “all I can think about…is what if I don’t have you here with me by the time the next one of either rolls around?"

 _Oh_.

"Cat..."

"No, don’t,” Cat snapped at her again, this time more forcefully. “ _Don’t_.”

"But you know I had to-" Kara tried one more time.

"No, you didn’t,” Cat replied sharply, hazel eyes hard and unblinking. She really did it this time, Kara thought to herself. “Not by yourself. Not with no plan. You still don’t get it do you?"

"Wh-"

"Every human life is important, and what you do as Supergirl is nothing short of a noble pursuit…” Cat said seriously, and Kara knew she meant every word.

Supergirl had no fiercer advocate than Cat Grant and they both knew it. Which is why Kara has been so confused about what was really going on. Until she saw Cat’s mask break, just for a second, as the real emotion behind the hard façade shone through, like a distress beacon.

Fear.

Cat was terrified, and Kara suddenly felt rooted to the spot as she waited with baited breath.

“But darling,” Cat choked, before she could control it, “to me you alone are worth more than any world, and I need you to remember that when you fly into a danger you might not come back from."

Kara’s arms twitched by her side for a moment, the urge to comfort Cat was so strong.

“I…”

But Cat wasn’t done yet.

"God, Kara,” she said through gritted teeth, the anger suddenly back in her voice with full force, even if its only purpose was to mask the pain. “Losing you...after everything you’ve come to mean to me...I think it would actually kill me."

And just like that, they were left standing there with everything out in the open, but still no resolution to their conflict. Kara wrecked her brain for something, anything to say to make this go away, but she had no answer.

Reign needed to be stopped, and Cat couldn’t ask her to just stand aside. She wouldn’t be the woman Cat fell for if she even considered it. But it didn’t have to be this way.

“I…I understand your concern,” she tried, already wincing at her own lack of tact. “But I need to do this, Cat. You know I do.”

“Her name is literally Wordkiller, Kara.”

“And _I_ am Supergirl,” Kara squared her shoulders, letting every bit of her Kryptonian pride fill her frame as she levelled her lover with the most confident gaze she could muster.

It wasn’t nearly enough to impress Cat.

“You’ll be _dead_ if you don’t come up with a better plan,” she replied coldly. “So don’t act so surprised if I don’t smile and cheer you on from the sidelines like a perfect soccer mom, because that is something that I absolutely cannot do.”

She turned to grab the door handle, looking over her shoulder at the last second before she slammed it shut with a loud bang and added, “not even for you, Kara.”

* * *

The car ride to the wedding was a predictably silent affair, the air filled with all the tension between the two women that was unlikely to be released after Cat snapped in her dressing room.

It wasn’t ideal, especially because they were supposed to present a united front for Maggie and Alex, but at the end of the day Cat and Kara were nothing if not professionals, and this wedding was definitely not the place nor time for whatever conversation it was becoming increasingly clear that they still needed to have.

Kara blinks her eyes as she tries to refocus her attention on the present, all eyes on the two brides standing front and center, completely oblivious to whatever is going on between the two women standing by each of their sides. Kara thinks it’s probably better that way.

Maggie and Alex agreed long ago that their ceremony wouldn’t be a fancy affair, with only their closest circle of friends and family there, which mostly meant their extended DEO and CatCo families, and Eliza on Alex’s side. It was the way they both wanted it.

The venue was a no-brainer, as being a DEO agent was how Alex met her wife-to-be in the first place, not to mention the privacy of the location. More surprising was the way the agents managed to transform the usually bleak space into something quite wonderful for the occasion.

A small gazebo was set up in one of the main halls, with about a dozen chairs on either side, Christmas lights hung from the ceiling, and Vasquez set up a bar in the corner for everyone’s utter delight. Not for the first time, Kara catches Cat looking longingly in its general direction, and she quells the overwhelming urge to roll her eyes in response.

Alex and Maggie are both wearing simple gowns, boots, and twin smiles as big as their faces allow, and Kara’s heart lifts considerably despite her brooding mood as she takes in her sister’s happiness. Alex deserves this so much, and Kara catches a tear under her lashes before it has the chance to escape. It takes everything in her not to look at Cat’s face, even as she feels the other woman’s gaze on her almost like a physical touch.

Instead, Kara focuses on J’onn, who is discreetly ignoring whatever is going on between Cat and Kara, and for that she is infinitely thankful. Or maybe he’s just too busy trying not to tear up himself as he performs his duty as officiator.

It was actually Maggie’s idea initially, thinking it was more than fitting for the couple to have the Martian man marry them who considered Alex the closest thing to a daughter he still had left in the world. Alex said yes without a second thought, thinking she couldn’t love this woman more if she tried.

After a brief introduction, J’onn moves on to say a prayer in the language of his people, before asking the couple to place the rings on each other’s fingers. Kara steps forward to hand Alex her own, smiling encouragingly at her sister as Cat steps forward to squeeze Maggie’s shoulder and place hers in her open palm.

Kara thinks about how it must sting for Maggie to have no family of her own present, but she contents herself in the knowledge that Alex’s family is as much Maggie’s now as it is her own, and not in name only. It has been for a while now, really.

Maybe the biggest surprise was how quickly the Danvers sisters’ partners bonded, without much prompting at all from their other halves, but then again Kara should know better by now. Cat has a certain charm about her that may be an acquired taste at first, but with time and maybe a little patience on both sides, there’s not many people she can’t win over eventually.

Not that Maggie was reluctant in the least.

It seems that dating a Danvers sister is its own club, and when the time came for Maggie to choose her maid of honour, there wasn’t much question in anyone’s mind, if the late night drinks and occasional shopping outings between the two were any indication.

They understood each other in ways that no one else could, and their friendship was genuine, and something that Kara knew Cat cherished.

J’onn asks for the vows next, and Eliza sniffles in her chair. It’s almost like they’re a normal family there for a second, and Kara peers up at Cat from under her lashes for just a moment, hating that she can’t do it openly as she usually does.

Cat’s profile is a smooth canvas of practiced calm, but after years of dedication and attention to the smallest details, Kara can see the cracks, small as they are. She’s barely hanging on by a thread, and Kara feels much the same.

Maggie goes first, keeping it simple but heartfelt, and her face is a puzzle of a million emotions as she declares her love for Alex in front of everyone who matters to them. Kara’s heart fills with joy for her sister, but it simultaneously aches everywhere her love for Cat is located, which makes it hard to breathe, even for a Kryptonian.

Alex takes a breath and Kara steels herself.

“You know,” her sister starts, tone as if she’s only speaking to the woman she loves and no one else. “Growing up, I used to think I could do it all by myself…school, work, life…everything. I also thought I was better off alone, and then we all know how that turned out.”

The small crowd is gracious with their laughter, but Kara is more grateful to Alex for the small comic relief than anything else.

“Obviously, I was wrong, but it wasn’t until I met _you_ …that I realized exactly why.” Alex tears up herself then, clasping Maggie’s hands in both of hers as she passionately continues. “Because no matter what I do, what danger I face, or how hard life gets…having you by my side makes it all worth it in the end, it really does. And I would rather do it with you than face it alone or with anyone else, and for that…I am so… _so_ grateful.”

Kara digs her nails into her palms to keep her hands from shaking. The urge to take Cat’s beautiful face into her hands and kiss her until it doesn’t hurt anymore has never been so overwhelming, and Kara doesn’t know if she can wait any longer to do exactly that.

“Maggie…I love you so much, babe.”

Alex doesn’t wait for J’onn to declare them married, but leans over to kiss Maggie herself, and the DEO erupts in cheers and hollers, everyone trying to conceal the fact that there wasn’t a dry eye left in the audience either.

Kara is only faintly aware of all of that though, as she only has eyes for the woman whose gaze is already locked on hers across the center of the room. It’s not exactly gravity, but they move to the same beat as they always have, and suddenly warm hands are touching her face gently and the relief washes over her with the force of a tidal wave.

She realizes a moment later that the sob she hears just then is her own doing.

“Cat,” her throat is dry and the sound doesn’t come out just right, but Kara can’t bring herself to care, because Cat is here, touching her, and looking at her like she’s a miracle.

When Kara finds her voice to say “I’m sorry,” she thinks for the first time in a week she might actually be forgiven.

“Come here, darling,” Cat shushes her with a finger over her lips, and not a moment later her silky lips are covering Kara’s. It’s not nearly enough, but it’s a start, and Kara holds on with both hands as she buries them in the baby blonde hair at the nape of Cat’s neck.

“We still need to talk,” Cat warns when she comes up for air, and Kara nods.

“I know…and I’m ready to listen,” she says, and she realizes it’s the truth. “For real this time.”

It sounds cliché, even to herself, but hearing Maggie and Alex’s vows has put things into perspective for Kara about what she wants in her own life. And what she really wants, more than anything, is Cat. She’s not quite ready to give up who she is in order to achieve that, but Cat would never ask her to, and they both know it.

Kara knows now more than ever that a compromise is inevitable, and there may still be more fights ahead before one can be reached, but Kara is ready to fight for what they have, because now that she has her back in her arms again, she is not letting Cat go again for anything.

Least of all for something as trivial as her own stubborn pride.

“Good,” Cat breathes, letting out a warm puff of air in the crook of Kara’s neck, making her giggle, before pulling the hero back towards her mouth. “But first, let me get reacquainted with you, because it’s been a really lonely week.”

Kara shivers at the prospect of where this night will surely go if Cat’s smirk and the burning desire in her eyes is any indication.

 “I agree,” she says between kisses, drawing Cat as close to her as she possibly can. “I missed you so much, Cat.”

“Me too.”


End file.
